Dean Murdoch wrote:Also he said there were TWO Australians committed for 2017, one ranked No. 2 in Australia (that would be Makuach Maluach) and the other ranked "top 20" - an educated guess could be the second commit was/is Grant Anticevich, also a Newington College guy. 6-6, 180 lb. forward ranked #19 by AUSA Hoops.

Haase's numbers in his one year at Cathedral High School are unimpressive, but he is a member of the Chilean Junior National Team where he averaged 11.6 points and 8.4 rebounds at the South American Championships last year.

DoubleDipper wrote:I've also heard Maluach's coach had him removed from the 2017 list because he was not happy with the way Maluach's name was being used without permission. Same could also happen with Anticevich.

That.....might be the strangest thing I've heard all week. I wasn't aware a media outlet needed permission to use someone's name.

Haase's numbers in his one year at Cathedral High School are unimpressive, but he is a member of the Chilean Junior National Team where he averaged 11.6 points and 8.4 rebounds at the South American Championships last year.

As is often the case, a high school and/or AAU coach looking for a little cred stated a player was "offered" just because a coach may have talked to a player during the evaluation period.

Haase was NOT offered by UP....in fact, it would appear he gave a verbal commitment to Colorado State.....

The confusion illustrates that notwithstanding the abilities and renown of our busy coach, the problem with recruiting remains the same. We take some interest in a prospective student athlete who then pledges to bigger schools with stronger programs. Reveno's departure will not change the recruiting landscape.

I've seen tape on the 5-11/165 Sorenson, and apparently he's never missed a shot.

After Isaac Bonton changed his mind about coming to UP, it was thought the new staff might re-recruit him, but IMO there are other PGs that should be considered first....after all, the next PG to come aboard will fill the spot left by Alec upon his graduation.

Dean Murdoch wrote:Also he said there were TWO Australians committed for 2017, one ranked No. 2 in Australia (that would be Makuach Maluach) and the other ranked "top 20" - an educated guess could be the second commit was/is Grant Anticevich, also a Newington College guy. 6-6, 180 lb. forward ranked #19 by AUSA Hoops.

A reliable source has confirmed that Coach Porter initiated the release both Grant Anticevich and Makuach Maluach from their verbal commitments.

As talented as the two forwards are, I can only think Coach Porter is looking for talent at other position, but it would seem an athletic forward of the same mold as Maker, and ranked #2 in Australia, would have been a solid addition next season.

DoubleDipper wrote: A reliable source has confirmed that Coach Porter initiated the release of both Grant Anticevich and Makuach Maluach from their verbal commitments.

During Coach Porter's trip to Australia to convince Coach Ben Johnson to come to UP, he was not permitted to recruit or even watch any student-athletes play by NCAA rule....so it probably makes sense that TP has given Anticevich and Maluach and the new UP program more options for the early and regular signing periods. (Remember, the only reason we know of these two is because former UP Coach Reveno tweeted about them after he left UP.....)

All the coaches are currently on the road recruiting, and they will continue to be on the road in the States and overseas for the next few weekends...so it's probably pretty certain Coach Porter or a member of his staff will be in Sydney sometime this summer or fall to watch the guys from Newington College.

With Wintering, Barreno, and Marshal graduating, it is imperative the Pilots bring in a point guard, center, and forward as part of the 2017 recruiting class. By releasing both Aussies (both are forwards), it's certainly possible the Pilots could still land Chier Maker's good friend, and the #2 player in Australia, Makuach Maluach.

DoubleDipper wrote:A reliable source has confirmed that Coach Porter initiated the release both Grant Anticevich and Makuach Maluach from their verbal commitments. As talented as the two forwards are, I can only think Coach Porter is looking for talent at other position, but it would seem an athletic forward of the same mold as Maker, and ranked #2 in Australia, would have been a solid addition next season.

I missed this the other day. I know nothing of Makuach Maluach besides him being ranked No. 2 in Australia's Class of 2017 at one point. On the surface, certainly seems questionable to just let a guy like that go if he was willing to come.

Dean Murdoch wrote:I missed this the other day. I know nothing of Makuach Maluach besides him being ranked No. 2 in Australia's Class of 2017 at one point. On the surface, certainly seems questionable to just let a guy like that go if he was willing to come.

Very weird. I guess we'll find out one way or another what's up.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I think there is still a good chance we'll see Maluach at UP....but Coach Porter needs to meet the young man and see him play. I believe that once Maluach meets TP, he'll still want to come to UP if another school hasn't snagged him first.

With the possibility of a scholarship opening up in the near future, there may be more options....a point guard, a center, and two wild cards....

Maybe Terry has a different mix of fairy dust than prior Pilot coaches. There are continual posts here about prospective student athletes who have little to no likelihood of attending Portland as they overwhelmingly accept offers from larger institutions. Our offers to them are not quite symbolic, but close. If Terry reals this young man in, then perhaps he can recruit in a remarkable way and I have misjudged--but I would not hold your breath.

So far in the Porter era the roster has been lessened by the transfer of two solid players. So far in the Porter era we have passed on two committed Aussies who may have added to the team a good skill set, or at least Porter's immediate predecessor thought that.

It is too early to begin characterizing the Porter era, obviously. We should very much give coach Porter an opportunity to succeed and he well may.

Interesting that you say it's too early to characterize the Porter era and then proceed to characterize the Porter era.

Is it too early or not?And is it from the Porter era or the Reveno era?

Your statement about recruiting players who then proceed to sign with bigger schools is an interesting one.

I read a study a couple years ago on exactly that point. It concluded that it's a fact of recruiting that if a kid gets an offer from a big five conference school and a mid major, the chances are something like 99% they will go to the big five school or a school with a major D1 football program. Something to do with funding.

there are a couple of exceptions, and it happens that our conference has two of them.

It also studied transfers, and concluded that 33.8% of players transfer to other schools. That number jumps to 37% if you factor out the one and done players. ( normal student transfer rate is 34% nationwide)

wrv wrote:It is too early to begin characterizing the Porter era, obviously. We should very much give coach Porter an opportunity to succeed and he well may.

Yeah, anytime there is change, particularly when the change is to a couple of coaches with recognizable names like Cantu and Porter, there is optimism, but I'm quite sure they feel the self-imposed pressure to find success in their recruiting efforts....just as much as UP fans want them to succeed.

We all know that given their druthers, a recruit will go to one of the big 5 schools....so the recruiting landscape will not have changed from the previous coaching eras at UP....but it will be up to the new staff to identify, recruit and beat out the other mid-majors to assemble the right mix of players that will bring basketball success to the Bluff.

pilotdad1 wrote:DD you should be charging for the diligent information gathering you provide. I follow the game but not nearly to the extent you do. Thank you!

Haha, yeah I guess I should be charging a fee from time-to-time, it would offset the cost of the mental health counseling sessions Mrs. DD says I need....

Had a nice chat with your son at the alumni game....still the same old humble and great guy!! Asked him if he was putting his psychology degree to good use. He didn't seem to think so, but I assured him he's actually using it everyday, even while playing professional basketball, he just doesn't realize it.

He said he got a chance to visit with you and that is was a great experience getting to see everybody.Ryan is home for a bit doing some skills camps here in Spokane before he leaves Aug 11 for Trier. I agree he is using his psych degree in everyday life. The plan is to play until its "done" and then accept one of the standing job offers he has. He also wants to get his Masters and do some Sports Counseling which I think he would be great at.

There's really no doubt that UP's recruiting priorities for 2017 are at point guard and center....and while it's very difficult to land a high school center that is ready to play at the D1 level, there are a number of point guards that could quickly do well at a mid-major. Marcus Shaver, Jr. is one of those:

Shaver is a 6-2 ESPN 3-star recruit with a bit of an interesting story.....but put simply, he started his prep career in Hawaii before starring at St. Mary's in Phoenix before departing for a prep academy in Dallas co-founded by footballer Deion Sanders, but when that school closed abruptly, Shaver transferred to another prep (basketball) academy in Plano that too closed down because its academics were not accepted by the NCAA. From there he went to another school for a short time before transferring to Trinity International in Las Vegas to play a national schedule against post-grad teams and catch up academically enough to be on track to graduate in 2017....

Said Shaver, “Prep school has been interesting, I learned a great deal playing against top talent. I enjoyed the traveling but I prefer being at a normal high school.” So now, with "normality" back in in Shaver's life, he will complete his senior year of high school back in his old Phoenix neighborhood at Shadow Mountain High School under the tutelage of 14 year NBA veteran Mike Bibby. Bibby, the head coach, is a Shadow Mountain and U of Arizona grad, and I just bet he and Coach Porter, whose sons have also gone to prep schools, are acquainted and have many mutual friends.